


Youthful Indiscretions

by squidgie



Category: Stargate Atlantis, White Collar
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - College/University, Community: comment_fic, First Kiss, First Time, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-12
Updated: 2019-08-12
Packaged: 2020-08-20 05:15:16
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 797
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20222401
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/squidgie/pseuds/squidgie
Summary: Young Evan Lorne has charm and charisma, a penchant for scheming, and the desire to go to New York University.  So what happens when he meets Neal Caffrey when he's scoping out the campus?





	Youthful Indiscretions

**Author's Note:**

> For the comment_fic prompt: Stargate Atlantis/Any, Evan Lorne +/ Any, roommates at college

Evan knew that his life in the dorms of NYU had been exactly like any of the hundreds of students that surrounded him. Mostly. Well, except for the expensive items that seemed to flow in and out of his dorm room, or the never-ending supply of cash that he had at his fingertips. Sure, there were plenty of rich kids around, because NYU attracted that type of student. There were plenty of clean-cut kids that summered in Europe or were whisked away by a chauffeured car to the Hamptons for the weekend. But Evan _earned_ every penny that he made. And by earned, he honestly meant stole.

The decision to bunk up with Neal Caffrey upon his admission to NYU (thanks to a well-placed hack by a computer friend of his) had hardly been an accident. Once deciding on the school, he stowed away on a cross-country flight out of SFO. Well, stowed away was such a harsh word. What Evan did was honestly use the bravado and charm that he'd developed getting out of trouble. And honestly, was is it his fault the airline had empty seats? A smile and a wink got him past security, and then cupping the gate agent's side as he leaned in, offering a stylish hairpin that he'd stolen from a sleeping woman, not twenty feet back, an innocent, "I'm sorry, is this yours?" asked as his eyes scanned the printed manifest. And then once in New York, tipsy from champagne, he walked the campus, where he spotted a handsome man just about his age with eyes the color of a nearly cloudless sky in summer. Before long, they were hidden in the library, making out - and each left with the other's wallet.

When they met twenty minutes later, they swapped wallets as well as stories. "You know, Evan Christopher Lorne of 1291 Waller Street, San Francisco," Neal said with a wink, "I don't think it was an accident that we stumbled into each other." As if to emphasize his words, Neal leaned in closer, his hand high up on Evan's thigh.

"'s not where I keep my extra cash," Evan replied, his eyes sparking in return to the smile that greeted him. No, that was a secret that Lorne gave up three hours later after Neal had gotten them a suite at the nearest hotel. But Neal's delicate fingers, which Evan begged for, and yet cursed as they brought him to the edge time and again, were magical. Ten more reasons that they might have a good future together.

Which is how they ended up as multi-year roommates at NYU, both in the art history program. Neal said the program was a brilliant way to get to know the masters - how they painted, studied their strokes, and figured out how much a heist would be worth - but for Evan, it was also for the love of art. 

Tuition was paid for by quick turnovers here and there. And trips back home to San Francisco, with presents for his sister and mother, paid for by larger, more intricate schemes. 

Theirs quickly became the best dorm room on campus. Even just as second-year students, the plethora of people, from freshmen and grad students to the occasional professor, their dorm was _the_ place to go. Their friends didn't have to know that the sound system had been nicked from a DJ booth between sets. Didn't need to know that the booze had rarely been paid for. Though he was pretty sure most of the students knew that only one bed was used at night. At least by the way Neal leaned into his touch as a professor held court over an intimate group of people, the topic of underrated painters of the renaissance period enhanced by the thick joint passed around the room.

Yes, Evan had it all. That is, until he and Neal got caught, tripped up by an alarm system that was supposed to be disabled. He and Neal were separated, though neither talked. But they were still broken up, with Neal caught because of a single fingerprint, while Evan was given the choice of jail or the military.

As Evan looked back, he appreciated Neal for all he'd been given. Someone to love at such a young age. The ability to hone a craft while he learned about art. And now, sitting in the cockpit of an F16, for the chance to escape the gravity of Earth. He often wondered about what happened to Neal, but just smiled when rolled-up paintings showed up in a mailing tube at his mother's house. Life was different now, and he'd have another chance to love one day. And maybe, if his transfer went through, he'd even be able to travel to the stars.


End file.
